Malèna

2000 Director Giuseppe Tornatore

This beautifully shot film is about a young man's infatuation for a beautiful older woman that blooms amidst the outbreak of World War II.

Renato is a 13-year-old boy growing up in a small Sicilian community. Mussolini has risen to power and has declared war upon England and France, but Renato has other things on his mind, mostly girls. While hanging out with his friends by the seashore, Renato spies Malèna, the daughter of one of his schoolteachers, whose husband Nino is fighting with Mussolini's army. Renato is immediately obsessed with Malèna and follows her like a lost puppy, spying on her whenever circumstances permit and imagining her as his co-star in elaborate erotic fantasies inspired by his favorite movies. Renato, however, is hardly the only man in town to be struck by Malèna's charms, and her beauty leads to resentment from the women of the community. Malèna's circumstances take a turn for the worst after her husband is reported to have died in combat, and she is left to the forces of envy and gossip. The narrow minded jealousy of the town's women force her into the very circumstance that they all believe she came from. She is brutally treated and exiled. Renato has some less than encouraging news to report when Nino turns out to be alive and finds his spouse is missing.

Malèna was written and directed by Giuseppe Tornatore, best known for Cinema Paradiso. This film marks him as not only a very accomplished director and writer but also as an engaging and compassionate story teller. It is one of those films that once seen, is never forgotten.

Cinema Paradiso

1988 Director Giuseppe Tornatore

This is Giuseppe Tornatore's motion picture masterpiece. For those who have never seen it, this extraordinary celebration of youth, friendship and the everlasting magic of films is sure to captivate your heart and send your spirit soaring.

Based on the life and times of the director himself, Cinema Paradiso offers a nostalgic look at films and the effect they have on a young boy who grows up in and around the title village cinema. The story begins in the present as a Sicilian mother pines for her estranged son, who left many years ago and has since become a prominent film director. He finally returns to his home village to attend the funeral of the town's former film projectionist, and, in so doing, embarks upon a journey into his boyhood just after WWII when he became the man's official son. In the dark confines of the Cinema Paradiso, the boy and the other townsfolk try to escape from the grim realities of post-war Italy. The town censor is also there to insure nothing untoward appears onscreen, invariably demanding that all kissing scenes be edited out. One day the boy saves the projectionist's life during a fire, and then becomes the new projectionist himself. A few years later he falls in love with a beautiful girl who breaks his heart after he is inducted into the military. Thirty years later he has come to say goodbye to his life-long friend, who has left him a little gift in a film can.

This is film making at its very best. It is a totally absorbing watch and not a dry eye will be seen anywhere. A lovely stroll down memory lane to a calmer less rushed world where people mattered and good things happened. The DVD release incorporates an additional 51 minutes of material that was edited from the release version. It broadens the experience considerably and adds a great deal more depth to the characters.